On 6 July 2004, half a million people crowded into Regent Street and the surrounding streets to watch a parade of Formula 1 cars. The success of this event has led to speculation regarding the possibility of a London Grand Prix.

Selected shops and other places

Apple retail store

 

Apple retail store opening at 10am on 20 November 2004.

The Apple retail store opened on Regent Street at 10am on 20 November 2004. At the time this represented the first such store in Europe, and only the fourth outside the United States (the preceding three are in Japan, and since then many more have opened outside the United States). The Apple Store Regent Street is the largest Apple retail venue by floor area (a title in which for a period was owned by the 5th Avenue Apple Store in New York City until a refurbishment in late 2006).

Austin Reed

Austin Reed's flagship store is located at 103-113 Regent Street. The store has an atrium at its centre, housing glass lifts allowing viewing across all floors. The lower ground floor sells womenswear and also houses Austin's, the refurbished 1920’s Art Deco Barber Shop, offering a full range of hair, face and body treatments for both men and women.

Broadcasting House

The BBC's headquarters are in Broadcasting House, whose front entrance is in Langham Place but easily visible from Regent St. Indeed, most Londoners think of Broadcasting House as marking the top end of Regent Street. Several national radio stations broadcast from this 1930s Art Deco building.

Dickins and Jones

In June 2005 owner House of Fraser announced that the department store Dickins and Jones, which traces its origins to 1803 and had been located in Regent Street since 1835, would close in January 2006. The store was said to have been making losses for several years and to have failed to keep up with more fashion-conscious rivals such as its neighbour Liberty. The building is currently being redeveloped with small shop units on the lower floors and flats and offices above.

Hamleys

 

Hamleys, one of the world's largest toy shops.

Hamleys toy shop can be found 100 yards south of Oxford Circus on the east side of the road. Until the 1990s it was the world's largest toy store (now Toys "R" Us, in New York), with six floors devoted to playthings. The fifth floor was recently opened with an open cafe. The ground floor is always decked out with a variety of soft toys, from small puppets to life-sized giraffes, and demonstrators.

Liberty

Liberty is a department store known for its Art Nouveau styles.

Oxford Circus tube station

Oxford Circus is the junction where Regent Street crosses Oxford Street, and the site of one of the busiest of London's underground stations. The Central, Bakerloo and Victoria lines all meet here.

The Crown Estate redevelopment

 

BMW.WilliamsF1 Team participated in a demonstration in London's Regent Street prior to the 2004 British Grand Prix.

Since the turn of the millennium, the Crown Estate has embarked on a major redevelopment programme in Regent Street and some of its side streets. This involves replacing some of the smaller shops with larger units. More importantly from a commercial point of view, many of the early 20th century offices, which typically for that era have many corridors and small individual offices, are being replaced with the open plan accommodation which is now required by tenants. This is being done by completing stripping out the interiors and rebuilding behind retained facades.

The Crown Estate moved its own headquarters from Carlton House Terrace to Regent Street in 2006.

The largest element of the plan is the reconstruction of the Quadrant at the southern end of the street close to Piccadilly Circus. In addition to shops and offices, a five star hotel and a small number of flats will be created here.